This invention relates to an improved small sailing ship and more particularly to a small sailing ship having greater versatility than those previously proposed.
There is a very popular type of small sailing craft in which a hull is formed from a material much like a surf board and mounts a mast for pivotal movement normally in all directions relative to the hull. The rider operates this watercraft by standing on the hull and pivoting the mast and swinging the sail carried by the mast. Although this type of sailing vessel has great popularity, it has a number of disadvantages which has limited its use for certain types of pleasure sailing.
For example, because of the configuration of the hull primarily like a surf board and the necessity of the operator to continually control the mast, this type of vessel is only utilized for local sailing and not for long distance cruising. Also, the configuration of the hull is such that the watercraft is not usable in all wind and wave conditions.
It is, therefore, a principal object of this invention to provide an improved small sailing watercraft that has wider versatility than those previously proposed.
It is a further object of this invention to provide an improved hull design for a small watercraft that will permit sailing in a wide variety of conditions and will not overly tire the rider.
It is a further object of this invention to provide an improved hull design for a small sailing watercraft that is both high in strength and which lends itself to long distance cruising.
One way in which the versatility of a small sailing watercraft of this type can be improved is by the use of one or more sponsons that are held to the main hull by outriggers. The use of the sponson will render the craft more stable and will give the operator an opportunity to rest without constant control of the watercraft. However, when sponsons are employed with a small watercraft, there are certain other disadvantages.
For example, the use of sponsons in connection with the watercraft and their attachment to the hull, which should be relatively lightweight in order to permit portability and wider usage, can put loadings that can damage the hull. Although the hull can be strengthened, normal strengthening methods tend to adversely effect the weight of the watercraft which defeats its basic nature.
It is, therefore, a still further object of this invention to provide an improved hull design for a small sailing watercraft of this type having a sponson that is mounted to the main hull by outriggers.
It is a further object of this invention to provide an improved light weight yet high strength small sailing watercraft of this type.
The small sailing watercraft of the board type, in addition to its aforenoted disadvantages, is not particularly advantageous for traveling from place to place because the watercraft does not afford any way in which a rider may carry other belongings with him. Also, a rider wishing to camp at a remote sight cannot use the previous small watercraft for this purpose because he has no place to store his camping gear. For example, if the rider wishes to utilize the watercraft in conjunction with camping, he can never sail far from the campsite because he must leave his property behind.
It is, therefore, a still further object of this invention to provide a small sailing watercraft of this general type wherein the hull provides a storage space for carrying equipment of the rider.
It is a further object of this invention to provide an improved hull design for a small watercraft that provides a storage space without adding to the weight of the watercraft and without adversely affecting its sailing ability.
As has been previously noted, small watercrafts of this type are primarily utilized for sporting purposes. Normally, the watercraft is transported to the location where it will be sailed by motor vehicle. Frequently, these watercrafts are used in beaches or other out of the way places where normal boat launching facilities are not present. When the watercraft is provided with sponsons, the launching of the watercraft from a beach presents substantial difficulties. It is, therefore, a further object of this invention to provide an improved sponson arrangement for a small sailing watercraft that will facilitate launching from a beach site.
It is yet another object of this invention to provide an improved small sailing watercraft having a sponson positioned so as to increase its versatility without detracting from its performance.